HOW TO DETAIL MY INTERIOR
The key to a successful interior detail is all about sequence. Every car interior is unique but consists of the same core components; A dashboard, door panels, seats, the floor, the highly neglected headliner (ceiling) and depending on the year of your car potentially a center console. As you clean and work your way around the interior it's important to avoid shifting dust and debris to a recently cleaned area. To avoid this and to clean most effectively, it is important to clean in the proper sequence working your way upward, outward, inward and finally getting the floor.
As always, the key to a good clean is good tools and good products for the issue you are going to be cleaning.
What you’ll need:
Microfiber cloth
Cleaning pads
Short handle brush
Vacuum
Preparation
Throughout the detailing process we’ll be dusting, vacuuming, spraying and applying products. To appropriately complete these tasks we’ll need to prep our cleaning surface by removing any larger items. Start by removing loose items like air fresheners and any items you can spot that are larger than a dime size and could present issues for a vacuum. You’ll also want to remove any items that you can clean outside of the car such as floor mats and be sure to leave your doors open.
Dusting
Once you’ve cleared the interior of any larger objects and removable items that can be cleaned outside of the car, you can begin by lightly dusting. This will serve two purposes: 1) It will give you the opportunity to survey the entire interior for any special scenarios you’ll need to address and 2) You can remove any debris for when it's time to apply wet product.
Headliner: Begin by using a microfiber cloth and removing any loose debris from the headliner. Remember that this is a light dusting. The goal is to knock off any loose dust mites and debris that may have risen into your headliner without embedding or smushing dirt into it.
We recommend working your way from the corners into the center of the headliner. Any debris that loosely falls around the seats or floor will be addressed later and you can move on to the door panels.
Door Panels: Wipe your door panels from the inside door hinge and outward away from the vehicle. If your door panels have any creases you can use a thick brush to run through them. Once complete move on to the dashboard.
Dashboard (Steering Wheel, Gauges): When dusting the dashboard. Work your way from the windshield inward toward the dashboard. After several wipes, use your soft bristle brush to clean out any of the nooks and crannies. Pay special attention to the far end of the dashboard where it meets the windshield. This part tends to trap dust as well as the air vents and the speedometer gauge.
Air vents are a major source for trapping dust. Here you can use a soft, long bristle brush to clean them out. Use the same brush to clean out any other special nooks and crannies your car has and wipe your speedometer gauge gently with a microfiber cloth to avoid scratching.
Vacuuming
After wiping out all the nooks and crevices of your car your microfiber cloth will have picked up most of the dirt but it will also have knocked around or transferred debris and dust mites into the air and what goes up must come down. Ineventiabily landing on your seats and floors. This is when vacuuming will come into play.
Seats (Leather/Vinyl/Fabric): Using a Shop-Vac with the car nozzle attachment or home vacuum with a flat plate nozzle, To maintain a strong suction keep direct contact with the surface being cleaned, including while vacuuming on uneven surfaces and on different angles.
For narrow spaces between seat creases and awkward ridges use a pipe crevice tool. This is the attachment with a 45° angle which is perfect for getting into tight narrow spaces between or under seats. When using this tool you'll want to make long continuous strokes to avoid sticking on contact.
If you're vacuuming leather or vinyl seats you’ll want to be careful to avoid roughing up your leather seats or scratching the clear coat on vinyl seats with the ends of the plastic nozzles. To avoid this you can take some masking tape and tape the edges of the plastic ends.
Floor: Interior floors tend to be pretty clean because they are protected by floor mats but keep in mind the specific layout of your floor mats, any debris settling on the floor base of your car will be on the outside edges so pay particular attention to these areas.
Floor Mats: Naturally floor mats get the most filth buildup. Just think of everything your shoes come in contact with - dirt, grime, grease, and then it gets stomped into your floor mats. To ensure you get a thorough cleaning use a stiff brush attachment to scrub off or loosen any embedded or dried dirt so you can easily vacuum any debris. Once complete, you can move on to the cleaning portion.
Cleaning
Now that you’ve properly prepped, dusted and vacuumed, cleaning will be a much simpler process. Your cleaning sequence will play just as an important role but you’ll now follow a new route with the same intent of avoiding any dirt being shifted into a recently cleaned area.
Floor Mats: If you’re deep cleaning your floor mats they’ll need time to dry. With the floor mats already pulled out of the vehicle and vacuumed, We recommend starting here first before working your way back into the car. Begin by applying an upholstery/carpet cleaner. Allow any activated agents to bond and dissolve into your mats. Use a short handle stiff bristle brush to scrub clean. To lift any stains, swirl and push upward on your brush. Once complete, allow for your floor mats to dry and move on to cleaning your dashboard.
Dashboard: Before applying any Interior Cleaner or Interior Detailer, ensure your dashboard is cool to the touch. This is to ensure your product doesn’t start to dry up and bake before you wipe. Once you're ready to apply your cleaning agent, be sure to give it a good shake and apply your solution directly onto your applicator pad or microfiber cloth outside of your vehicle. To avoid any unwanted spray residue on unintended areas.
To clean begin by wiping your dashboard in sections. Moving up and down or side to side motion. You’ll also want to pay special attention to where the glass meets the dash. This can be a tough spot to clean. For a tight spot like this you can use your interior brush. We recommend using a UV protector and scrubbing with special attention to the areas that are prone to sun exposure for prevention of future cracking, fading and discoloration.
Seats: Similar to your dashboard, Seats are another area for concern when it comes to sun exposure. So we recommend using a UV protector here too. Spray your interior cleaner or interior detailer directly on to your scrubbing pad or microfiber towel and gently scrub in circular motions to lather and lift the dirt. As you clean and your solution drips. It's advised to clean in divided sections by cleaning from the top down beginning with tops and backs of the seat and finishing off with the base of seats working your way outward with the doors and around to the other side. Repeatng the process with the next set of seats.
